Sealing devices



E. T. G. LIND SEALING DEVICES .July ll, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 19, 1957 IIIIl 41 /NVENTOR [VALD TRBJRV 61/5 MV UND y WM A ORNEVS United States Patent O 2,991,902 SEALING DEVIC'ES Evald Torbjm Gustav Lind, Hamnbassagen,

Trolllattan, Sweden Filed Nov. 19, 1957, Ser. No. 697,491 Claims priority, application Sweden Nov.- 27, 1956 1 `Claim. (Cl. 220-39) The present invention relates to` a sealing device be tween two members and more particularly to a scaling device between the opening of a receptacle or container and a closing device or member for said opening. The invention has for its principal object to provide a scaling device for `this purpose which is simple in Construction, cheap in manufacture and eflicient in operation. Other objects of the invention will be made clear by the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings illustrating some cmbodimcnts of the invention.

In the drawings, FIG. 1 is a vertical section of the top portion of a container the opening of which is closed by a screw plug with a scaling device according to the invention. FIG. 2 is a top plan View of the screw plug. FIG. 3 is a vertical section of a bottle neck having a screw cap according to a second embodiment of the invention. FIG. 4 is a top plan view of this second enbodiment. FIG. 5 is a vertical section corresponding to FIG. 3 and illustrating a third embodiment. FIGS. 6 and 7 aire vertical sections of a fourth embodiment With the closing device in different positions. FIG. 8 is a top plan view of this fourth embodiment. FIG. 9 is a vertical section of a container with closing device of another Construction and having a scaling flange similar to that of FIGS. 6 to 8. FIGS. 10 to 12 are sections showing various forms of the scaling flange.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, in which the closing device is constituted by a screw plug, 1 denotes the top portion of the container about the opening 2 of which a neck or collar 3 with an internal screw thread 4 is Secured to the container, said neck or collar having a step 5 forming a seat for the screw plug. This plug comprises a cylindrical sleeve portion 6 having an external thread and formed integrally with a disc-shaped cover and handle portion 7 whcrcas the lower end of the sleeve portion is formed with an annular sealing fiange 8 having conical inner and outer surfaces. The free edge of this frusto-conical scaling flange is dircoted inwards towards the axis line of the cylindrical sleeve portion 6. The conical inside of the scaling flange forms an obtuse angle to the inside of the sleeve portion 6. The scaling flange is substantially thnner than the sleeve portion 6, and the material is `of such a nature that the scaling flange, which is cast integrally With the screw plug, is elastically deformable in a substanti ally higher degree than the sleeve portion 6 which is comparatively rigd. Suitable properties for this purpose have certain plastics materials such as polythenc.

When the screw plug is screwed home, the conical outside of the elastic scaling flange 8 Will resiliently abut against the seat 5. By the elasticity of the flange an efcient seal is obtained, and, when the screw plug is well tightened, it is not exposecl to be easily released by vibrations.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show the invention applied to a screw cap for a bottle or the like. This screw cap has a cover portion 7 and a sleeve portion 6 designed to encrcle the neck 4 of a bottle 1 or other container and provided With cngaging means consisting of an internal screw thread 9 engaging with an external screw thread 10 on the neck. The underside of the cover portion 7 is formed with an annular fiange 8 of elastic character and of a trusto-conical shape tapering downwardly. The thickness of this flange preferably decreases towards the free 2,991,90Z Patented July 11, 1961 end thereof. The conical inside of this flange forms an acute angle with the underside of the cover portion 7, and the conical outer side of the flange is designed to abut against the mouth of the neck at 5. When the screw cap is screwed home, the outer side of the resilient sealing flange 8 is forced against the seat 5 whereby a tight closing is obtained. The closing head may be made from plast-ics material, for example of the kind above mentioned, at least the lower and inner portion of the scaling flange (except the edge bead which may be provided as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12) being thnner than the cover portion 7 so that the letter and the sleeve portion 6 are relatively rigid as compared with the scaling flan ge 8.

The embodment of FIG. 5 agrees with the embodiment just described with the exception of the means by which the cap is connected with the neck 4. According to the cmbodiment of FIG. 5, the sleeve portion 6 is somewhat elastic and is stepped at its lower edge as shown at 11, this stepped portion co-operating with the underneath side of an external bead 12 or the like on the neck 4. The lower end surface 13` of the sleeve portion 6 is substantially conical so that the closing cap by making use of the elasticity of the sleeve portion may be forced over the mouth of the neck in which operation the lower end of the sleeve portion will be distended by the co-operation of the end surface 13 with the bead -12 of the bottle. Thus, in this operation the closing cap is connected with the bottle without rotation of same, and also in this case the ange 8 in closed position is elastically deformed by its pressure against the seat 5.

According to FIGS. 6 to 9 the upper edge portion of the container 1 consists of a scaling fiange 8 having the shape of a hollow frustum of a cone tapering upwards. This flange is thnner than the adjacent side wall portion of the container, and the container is made from such a material that its thicker sections are relatively rgid and its thnner sections are relatively elastic. By preference, the container is made from suitable plasti'cs material (such as polythene or polyamide plastic). In the embodiment of FIGS. 6 to 8, the outer side of the container 1 is provided with a screw thread 10 adapted to engage with an interior screw thread 9 on the sleeve portion 6 of the closing cap. This cap may be made from hard or semi-hard material (sheet metal, rigd or scmi-rigid plastics material etc.). When the closing cap is screwed home on the container, the underside of its cover portion 7 will elastically deform the flange 8 which will be bent down and inwards as shown by FIG. 7, and the flange by an elastic pressure will tightly abut against the cover portion 7'. By this arrangement the opening of the container will be sealed very well.

In the embodiment of FIG. 9, the container has a scaling flange 8 similar to that one described With referencc to FIGS. 6 to 8, but in FIG. 9 the means, by which the cap is held in closing position, comprise an externai bead 12 on the container, said bcad in the closed position of the cap co-operating with an inwardly projecting flange 11 on the sleeve portion 6 of the cap. The lower surface 13 of the sleeve portion 6 is substantially conically shapcd so that the cap can be forced over the opening of the container in which operation the lower edge of the cap owng to the elasticity thercof is widened by the co-operation of the conical surface 13 with the conical surface 14 forming the upper side of the bead 12. The cap is made from semi-rigid or pliable material enabling a certain elastic deformation of the cap, when it is forced over or removed from the container after which the cap recovers its normal shape. Also in this case the container and the cap may bc made from suitable plastics material.

The conical inside of the scaling flange 8 in the em- 3 bodiments of FIGS. 6-9 forms a direct continuat ion of the inside of the adjacent portion of the side wall of the container. Upon removal of the cap, the free edge of the flange may serve as a sweeping edge by means of which material stick'ng to the ngers, a brush or other object may be brought back to the container.

When made from certain materials, the sealing fiange 8 of the various embodiments requires a reinforcement in order to prevent the formation of wrinkles or cracks in the thin flange, deterorating the sealing efiect; For this purpose the free edge of the flange is formed with a bead 15 all around the flange, which head may have various cross-sections as shown by FIGS. 10 to 12.

In each embodiment the cone angle of the trusto-conical scaling flange 8 may be about 30 to about 120 degrees.

What I claim is:

A sealing device for a conta'ner having an interiorly threaded tubular neck above an opening to be closed and a seat for said device surrounding said opening, said scaling devce comprsing, in combination, a closing member having a plug portion with an external thread on said plug portion adapted to threadedly engage with the interier thread of the neck, a handle portion on one end of said plug portion and formed integrally with said plug portion, an annular elastically deformable fiange formed on the opposite end of said tlreaded plug portion, said flange having the inside and the outside thereof each defined by a frusto-conical wall taperng from the last mentioned end of said plug portion with the cone angle of said frusto-concal wall being about to degrees and the thckness of the material of said trustoconical flange being substantally smaller than the thickness of the material of said plug portion, said fiange being capable of having i-ts trusto-Comical outside` wall zbut against said seat and be partially inserted in said opening in the closed position of said closing member so as to be forced somewhat inwardly and upwardly by the closing pressure of said closing member when the plug portion 'is threaded into said neck.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,038,858 Sacks Apr. 28, 1936 2,8l3,650 Takahashi et al Nov. 19, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 58,377 France June 24, 1953 1,060,557 France Nov. 18, 1953 477,152 Italy Ian. 13, 1953 757,792 Great Britain Sept. 26, 1956 

